this post was submitted on 25 Jan 2025
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U.S. President Donald Trump says Canadians would have β€œmuch better” health coverage if Canada became the 51st state.

He made the remarks during a briefing in North Carolina, where he toured areas struck by Hurricane Helene on Friday.

β€œI would love to see Canada be the 51st state,” he said. β€œThe Canadian citizens, if that happened, would get a very big tax cut -- a tremendous tax cut -- because they are very highly taxed.”

β€œThey’d have much better health coverage. I think the people of Canada would like it,” said the president.

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[–] ICastFist@programming.dev 4 points 4 hours ago

Wealthy people would have much better access to trivial / cosmetic medical procedures... Sure... I'll grant that

[–] theacharnian@lemmy.ca 17 points 15 hours ago* (last edited 12 hours ago) (2 children)

He's preying on some real issues with our system, such as the chronic lack of primary preventative care for the majority of the population in places like Montreal. When it takes months to see a doctor who rushes you, the private options prevalent in the US start sounding attractive.

So let's make sure this fool has no leg to stand on by properly funding our public healthcare system, treating our healthcare workers right, and by reducing the barriers to the recognition of foreign healthcare workers' credentials.

[–] WarlordSdocy@lemmy.world 3 points 6 hours ago

That just sounds exactly like the US system though but you have to pay for it. My girlfriend has been dealing with medical stuff lately and was being bounced around between places with a month or more waiting time between each one. And whenever something came up that she would want to ask her primary care provider about it would be a few months for an appointment. The US system as far as I can tell doesn't really have much better wait times yet people still act like it's better here when my experience is it very much isn't.

[–] neomachino@lemmy.dbzer0.com -1 points 12 hours ago (1 children)

Isn't private healthcare still an option? Not that it should be the case, but I'd much rather pay a thousand a month (which is cheap) for my family to have prompt access to primary care and virtually nothing (?) for hospital trips, specialist etc.

I'm not sure how it works in places with UHC, and my job pays 100% of my insurance now, but a few years ago I was paying $1200 a month where my employer split the cost and still had to pay $300 for every doctor visit for me and about $50 for my son. Anytime any of us were in the hospital we had to ask at every step how much something would cost because we've ended up with a few hospital bills totaling up to crippling debt that we'll never get out of.

Even with my insurance costing me nothing now I still pay ~$200 for every doctor visit because we never hit out deductible of ~$6000 which keeps getting raised every few months. We definitely could hit that deductable but we'd still end up owing money for every little thing. I avoid going to the doctors because we can't afford it. We have to save for any tests/procedures at this point, I've been putting off an echo and stress test that I'm supposed to get every 6 months for about a year and a half, my heart medication just doubled in price, an ultrasound for my pregnant wife cost us $800 last month and for some reason it didn't apply towards our deductible.

[–] theacharnian@lemmy.ca 5 points 12 hours ago* (last edited 12 hours ago) (1 children)

Paying 1k$ a month for doctors is completely ridiculous in Canada. I'm comfortable right now but that would completely break my budget.

It is an option I guess for the rich rich, but for the vast majority that's just not a thing that we'd consider "reasonable", much less "cheap".

Employer health insurance covers dental, drugs, eyes though. So people that don't have it struggle and that's not nothing. Which is why the government just passed some limited coverage but it's not universal as it should be.

So you see: completely different mindset.

[–] Someone@lemmy.ca 1 points 8 hours ago

Yeah, in BC when we used to have premiums it was only $75/mo and if I remember correctly it scaled up from $0 if you made below about $10000 to the full $75 around $30000.

[–] captainlezbian@lemmy.world 11 points 14 hours ago

Hey no fair, give it to the current citizens first

[–] NastyNative@mander.xyz 7 points 15 hours ago

Canada dont believe the lie!

[–] CanadaPlus@lemmy.sdf.org 11 points 17 hours ago* (last edited 16 hours ago) (1 children)

Better healthcare is easy, with a small loan of a million dollars.

[–] NastyNative@mander.xyz 3 points 15 hours ago

Im Dead…..lol

[–] emeralddawn45@discuss.tchncs.de 24 points 23 hours ago (2 children)

What is with the huge amount of idiots who would rather pay hundreds or thousands a month in insurance and healthcare costs just to save a couple hundred a year in taxes? Its actually unbelievably dumb.

[–] ControllerCat@lemmy.ca 6 points 11 hours ago (1 children)

Yank here. So, we don't have broad public healthcare because it keeps middle class people terrified of losing their white collar jobs. It also appeals to American racism, putting barriers up for people of color and the working poor to get equal treatment. Many Americans would happily screw themselves over to ensure someone else (they hate) has it worse.

We have hours long lines at private urgent care, and seeing a general practice doc takes 3 to 6 months of wait time (if you're lucky). Also, I'm queer. If The U.S. did have broad public healthcare, it would instantly be weaponized against all LGBTQ+ folks.

Tldl, in the States it's mostly about keeping the middle class terrified of losing their jobs, and ensuring there are working-poor people to sneer at.

[–] emeralddawn45@discuss.tchncs.de 5 points 11 hours ago (2 children)

Yeah i get why the lobbyists want it. I dont get why the answer from so many citizens seems to be "i dont want my taxes to go up". Like bro youre paying ten times the amount now that you would in any tax increase.

[–] bitwolf@sh.itjust.works 1 points 4 hours ago

Dude the tax meme for American voters drives me insane.

[–] ControllerCat@lemmy.ca 1 points 9 hours ago

A lot lf Americans just don't think about it that way. There's a multitude of reasons based more on sentiment and group social pressure than the obvious math.

Many Americans have a great deal of personal optimism to the tune of "well I'm not sick right now". It's a gamble that everyone loses, but in the short term you keep more money. It speaks to the belief that personal heath is a moral virtue (or failing), therefore a moral person shouldn't have to pay for immoral people's "bad choices". And, if someone didn't save enough money to invest in their own health, that's also a moral failure.

There's also terror of appearing too feminine. Care, either receiving it, or giving it to others, is feminine coded for a lot of Americans. So, paying into (and participating in) a broad public healthcare system becomes a crisis of masculine self (and group) identity. sarcasm You wouldn't want people to think you're a sissy right? sarcasm

Er, sorry for the wall of text.

[–] ilega_dh@feddit.nl 5 points 17 hours ago* (last edited 17 hours ago)

Won’t you think of the poor healthcare execs? How will they afford their home in Aspen???

[–] Stalinwolf@lemmy.ca 21 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (1 children)

I spent thirty years in the States and seven years now in Canada. I can say with absolutely certainty that the US system is fucked. I've never paid a dime in Canada.

[–] fourish@lemmy.world 15 points 18 hours ago

I got major surgery in Canada. I took out my wallet to show them photoID. Then I put it away.

My entire, full bill for surgery? I paid for parking.

[–] SplashJackson@lemmy.ca 26 points 1 day ago

Trump, and anyone giving him a platform, can go fuck themselves!

[–] SirMaple__@lemmy.world 17 points 1 day ago
[–] SARGE@startrek.website 56 points 1 day ago (5 children)

Funny, because I know plenty of people in Ohio who have gone to Canada specifically for better and more affordable medical treatment.

[–] formergijoe@lemmy.world 20 points 1 day ago

I know people in AZ and southern California who do the same thing but to Mexico

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[–] wise_pancake@lemmy.ca 85 points 1 day ago (38 children)

No thank you.

My wife went to the ER after hurting her foot, it was an hour wait and the only cost was $40 for a set of crutches.

I like our system.

[–] seang96@spgrn.com 39 points 1 day ago (2 children)

In the US you'd have a 4 to 6 hour wait, $3000 to hospital for using the ER, $2000 for the doctor, and if there were scans and such a $$$$$ for using them! Oh also they will take months to bill you but also send it to debt collectors if you don't pay it for a month so then all of your personal data is sold and you get harassed to pay your debt!

[–] Blue_Morpho@lemmy.world 27 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Here's a fun one my wife got:

She picked an in network doctor for her treatment so insurance would cover it. She got a large bill anyway because the office that the doctor worked in was out of network.

It's literally impossible to get insurance coverage. You can pick the doctor or building (I've read anesthesiologists can be separate too.) But you are going to pay a bill that insurance won't cover.

[–] kent_eh@lemmy.ca 4 points 11 hours ago

She picked an in network doctor

Yet another thing that Canadians never have to concern ourselves with.

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[–] phoenixz@lemmy.ca 17 points 1 day ago (1 children)

California is already wading their feet in ceding, they should join Canada. If not as a provence then as a federation or something

[–] CanadaPlus@lemmy.sdf.org 6 points 17 hours ago* (last edited 4 hours ago)

I've seen a couple references to this. How serious is the discussion down there?

Size-wise, California would basically be a second Canada if it was independent. For that reason, I doubt we would jump at it (although I'd support it). There's the whole 1860's precedent that you aren't allowed leaving, though.

I wonder if they could convince Oregon and Washington to go with them. We could have a friendly American border again.

[–] BonesOfTheMoon@lemmy.world 30 points 1 day ago

Eat shit orange rapist.

[–] swordgeek@lemmy.ca 28 points 1 day ago (2 children)

The media needs to stop reporting 'neutrally' on this bullshit, and call it out as expansionist lies.

[–] MapleEngineer@lemmy.world 10 points 1 day ago (1 children)

The owners of the media support Trump. When this shit is all over the oligarchs need to be in jail and their wealth given back to the people.

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[–] riskable@programming.dev 40 points 1 day ago (1 children)

When he says, "They'd have much better health coverage" he's talking about the rich people. Not normal people!

He doesn't consider normal people, people.

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[–] HellsBelle@sh.itjust.works 67 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Whoever is whispering dumb shit in Trump's ear needs to go away.

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[–] Sunshine@lemmy.ca 61 points 1 day ago (1 children)
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[–] vastard@lemmynsfw.com 47 points 1 day ago (1 children)

You keep your $1,300 insulin. I like my access to vaccines and $0 hospital stays.

β€œMr. Trump, fuck off” will be the universal response of the western world before March.

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[–] pubquiz@lemmy.world 28 points 1 day ago (1 children)

I'd get shot, dead. As a Canadian I would be bound to defend the country and will murder as many america invaders and Quislings as possible, So Id be killed for it - just the way it'd go,

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[–] SpaceNoodle@lemmy.world 51 points 1 day ago

Yeah, Luigi delivered a message of love.

[–] JokeDeity@lemm.ee 7 points 1 day ago

Trumpler talks like the average never-left-the-county redneck and not like someone who's been all over the world.

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